Some people are just in denial. They dedicate their lives to something and do not want to adimt they may have made a mistake or have had some misunderstandings. So, they try to appeal to some other authority in order to justify themselves since they have no means by which to demonstrate their point.

All these quotes from old aikido masters and anecdote after anecdote, especially the 'assumptions' one, make me realize even more that the art form is full of people with delusions. Unable to defend their own opinion or training they seek to disparage others.

At the end of the day...if you are training for self-defense...budo...whatever euphemism you wish to use....how do you KNOW your training will be effective? Failing certainty (someone will say you can never know...which is part of their problem), by which standard do you measure your training?

For me, i have been hit. I know what it feels like. I can tell when someone else is going to hit me since the body moves in certain ways. I know what I am capable of doing in terms of reactions times and flexibility. From judo I know how to instinctively fall in the correct manner as to now smash my head on the ground.